Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Mobile sites or mobile apps, here is why?

Author Bio :Anand Rajendran is CEO and Co-Founder of Zoplay.com, best PHP scripts development company located in India. Zoplay is a part of Casperon Technologies a leading social and mobile development company which developed a Zoplay Scripts . I’m a Tech geek; Digital marketing expert, Entrepreneur, and Atheist who loves to write everything about PHP Scripts and mobile application development.

WHAT IS A MOBILE SITE?

A mobile site is designed especially for the smaller screen, touch screen mobiles and tablets.It is the lighter version of a full fledged website.It can be accessed using Web browsers like Safari on iOS and chrome on Android.

This site allows consumers to access content, even on slow data connections without any agreement to download them. It consists of a bowser based HTML pages that are linked together and accessed over the internet.Like any website,mobile wesite can display text,data,images and video.

Generally,the mobile version includes a finite number of pages.Whereas, many pages are displayed on the desktop version.Here,users can find additional information.Mobile sites play a huge role when it comes to a client engagement.

Both mobile site and mobile app enables users to share content with friends and followers by integrating social media apps and websites.Most of the people spend time on smartphones checking email and social media.The majority of consumers in in western markets have desktop and tablet devices which they tend to use for more detailed view and purchasing.

WHAT IS A MOBIE APP?

A mobile app is a software application designed to run on wireless computing devices such as smart phones and tablets.The mobile applications are optimal for the people who use any particular service frequently,such as cab booking and mobile recharge.Each app provides many functionalities like game,calculator or mobile web browsing.Eventhough mobile app is a booming one,this techniwue is somewhat lacking.Mobile apps are generally small ,individual software units with limited function.

Use of software has been popularized by Apple Store,which sells thousands of applications for the phone,IPad and IPod Touch.The other names are web app,online app,iphone app or smart phone app.

WHAT IS NATIVE MOBILE APP?

A native mobile app is a smart phone application that is coded in a specific programming language such as C and Java.It provides faster performance and a high degree of reliability.They have also access to phone’s various devices such as camera and address book.But,this type of app is expensive to develop because it is tied to one type of operating system.

BENEFITS OF A MOBILE WEBSITE

The fundamental benefit of a mobile website it makes routine websites more accessible for mobile users.Itsdata,images,videos and pages are similar to that of the regular version of the website.The main pros is that customers can access websites any time,any place using any device.The customers cannot delete your the mobile website.It is much easier to find a mobile website.It is available for both new and returning customers.Beyondthis,there are other apps like Hybrid App,Dedicated Web App,Generic Mobile App.

BENEFITS OF A MOBILE APP

On the view of business field visibility,accessibility are increased.There is a great exposure across mobile devices.Mobile App provides benefits for the customers also.Users get the notification of special events,launches,navigation information etc.

MOBILE APP – IN SMALL SCALE BUSINESS

Direct Communication Channel To consumers :

The information about products,prices,sales are sent directly to the customers.This is possible through the option of push notification.

Advantage Of Offline Information :

Customers can access information on app even if they are not connected to the internet.One can build maps,productlist,podcasts,games,guides,videosetc .There is no limit to the offline information in a mobile app.

Better For Customer Engagement :

The customer engagement is increased at a higher rate.Mobile apps integrate so many different activities and capabilities.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MOBILE APP AND MOBILE WEBSITES

A mobile appremains on the user’s smart phone ,therefore it is ideal for frequent and repeated use.A mobilewebsiteis designed for large audiences,large time window or for targeted audiences,limited time window.The updating setups differ in mobile site and mobile window.In mobile sites,the updating process is an automated one.Whereas in the mobile app,users are required to to download and authorize each update.Thisupdating increases frustration for users and reducing flexibility for companies.

FEATURES OF MOBILE SITE AND MOBILE APP :

Although mobile app and mobile site aren’t the same thing,they offer same features like mobile commerce,mobile marketing and click to map.

ADVANTAGES OF MOBILE SITE vs MOBILE APP

A mobile website is always going to be the first step in mobile outreach strategy.It has a number of fundamental advantages over mobile apps,which includes wider accessibility,compatibility and cost effectiveness.

Instant Availability of Mobile Websites :

A mobile website is directly accessible to the users through a web browser across IPhone,Android,Blackberryetc.Whereas in mobile app,the user have to download and install the app from the App Store or Google Play Store.

Greater Visibility :

Since many apps are listed on the App Store or Google Play Store,their visibility is restricted.But,mobile sites are indexed on various search engines;they are easy to find.

Distribution Of Content :

When users like the content of any site,the person can simply share it with others on different platforms with just one click.The publishers can even direct user to any site from a blog,email or even a website.This is not applicable in mobile application.

Updation Not Needed :

To use mobile apps in a wranlge free manner,users have to first download them on their devices and then update from time to time.Whereas,in mobile sites this updating is not needed.Users can access mobile sites as per their choice.

Cost Of Development :

The expansion of a mobile site is hundred times more cost-effective and less time-consuming than native mobile apps.The cost of regular updates,testing is very limited in the mobile site.

Mobile Website Itself Can Be An App :

Just like a standard website,mobile websites can be developed as database driven applications that act like native apps.

Support And Sustainability :

Here ,the investment considerations don’t end with the initial launch.

STILL AN APP MAKE SENSE ?

Inspite of the many advantages of a mobile site,Mobile apps are still trendy and there is a list of scenarios where an app will be the best choice.For the bilateral games like Angry Bird, an app is almost going to be the best choice.It plays a vital for the manipulation of data,complexcalculations,generation of reports.If a user is going to use a app in a personalized fashion on a regular basis ,then an app provides a procedure to do that.To perform functions without a network,access a user’s camera then an app makes sense.

MOBILE WEB OVERTAKES DESKTOP SERVICES

Nowadays most of the people, access the web from smartphones and tablets than from desktop.A recent survey says that mobile and tablet devices accounted for fidty one percent of internet use worldwide.Mobilecompability is increasing in a wider manner.Googlefavoursmobile friendly websites for its mobile search results.InUk, about seventy five percent of the people use internet through mobile devices whereas in US,it is only about forty two percent.Many websites are mobile friendly for small businesses,sole traders and professionals.

DEPENDING ON THE GOAL

If one’s aim is to deliver content and establish a broad mobile presence that can be easily shared between users and found on search engines,then a mobile site is the logical choice.On the other hand if goal is interactive engagement with the users or to provide an application that needs to work more like a computer program than a website,then an app is probably going to be required.